Hi Kirsty, could you please advise the colour of your vanity and whether it is a custom made one and if not, could you let me know its name and where you bought it. Also, what is the colour of your floors tiles and where did you get them from. (I have come to the conclusion that charcoal/dark grey tile plus a much lighter grey tile plus white on some walls plus a timber vanity or timber accessories in bathroom , plus white (or close to it) below sink counter top is the way to go for a beautiful bathroom. The trick is figuring out exactly what proportion of each colour to use and where to put them for each particular layout.

Tribble - I think we're seeing this from two different perspectives. I want a house that isn't going to go up in flames while I'm inside it. I'm prepared to accept that the house might go up in flames, but if it gives me good time to get away, that's okay with me. Random embers are not going to set a fire-resistant wood deck on fire; it will take a lot more than that. And by the time the fire is that powerful, I would be long out of there. It was the "stay and fight" mantra, not fire resistant decks, that killed people in those bush fires back in 2009. By the way, the fire requirements where we were (NSW) required roof sprinklers. Turn on the sprinklers, and the deck and everything around it, the sides of the house, etc, were all going to be hosed down, and nobody had to be there to do it. Just turn on the pump and get the heck out of there. You might want to look into those, because for me, the knowledge that we had those sprinklers was a big security feature. We also had fire resistant screens all along the side of the house exposed to potential fire, so, again, it would have been difficult for embers to get in or under the house. And yes, we had requirements that the subfloor be protected by non-combustible walls. They required concrete blocks to protect the subfloor area. A massive bushfire would have taken out the house, maybe, but there was enough there to protect us long enough for us to get out. And that's what matters in the end. I don't believe you can totally fire-proof anything except a totally concrete and steel structure, with nothing but concrete and steel inside it. 9/11 showed that a concrete and steel building will still burn because of the combustibles inside it. So, it's a matter of risk assessment based on the best advice you can get, and that often comes from the guys in the RFA. The OP should find out what the actual regulations are, and then talk to the guys that actually deal with the fires, and base here decisions on that.

So is this just for the stair or for the actual flooring? Blackbutt will be more consistent and lighter. Spotted gum has more variation in colour. It's all natural product so it's next to impossible to see exactly/perfectly what it will look like, and the particular finish can make a difference too. But these two are quite different. Blackbutt is a lighter option closer to a Tasmanian Oak or Vic Ash in tone but much harder/denser, with a bit more character in it and much better for stairs than the softer hardwoods. This is Blackbutt: Spotted gum is much different has quite a distinctive/australian look to it as per below: Significant difference. Depending upon what adjacent flooring and also the stair design one or the other could work. It's about choosing the right one for your particular context. If you want an interesting/varied feature spotted gum could be the go, if it needs to be more understated and toned down then blackbutt could be the better option - good luck :) PD

Hi why don't you install the spotted gum floor on the staircase? you can just order a plain staircase from the stair company, and the flooring installer is able to lay spotted gum floor on the staircase. The stair nosing can be customized by using the same spotted gum floorboards. That way you will have a flush finish through the house space.